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Van Ru Credit To Pay $2.3M To Settle TCPA Suit
By Kira Lerner

Law360, New York (August 14, 2014, 1:50 PM ET) -- Van Ru Credit Corp. agreed on Wednesday to pay $2.3 million, or $1,600 per class member, to settle allegations that it placed prerecorded calls to plaintiffs’ phones without consent, in what attorneys call one of the largest per-member Telephone Consumer Protection Act class settlements ever.
Arizona federal judge Stephen M. McNamee approved the settlement under which Van Ru agreed to pay class members $1,600 each to settle the suit filed by lead plaintiff Nivea Ritchie in January 2013 alleging it placed unsolicited calls on behalf of debt collectors Palisades Collection LLC and Asta Funding Inc.

“For robodialed calls, I have not seen any other settlements that were this high on a per-person basis,” Mike Greenwald, counsel for the plaintiffs, told Law360. “We did pretty exhaustive research, and I didn’t come across anything that was even close.”

Ritchie filed suit in Arizona federal court alleging Van Ru placed prerecorded calls to the wrong consumers’ cellphones by using an inaccurate skip trace vendor, in violation of the TCPA.

Class members receiving payments under the settlement include all people in the U.S. whose cellphones Van Ru called using an automatic dialing service from January 1, 2012, to May 31, 2012, according to the order. Richie will receive $12,000 from the settlement fund for her role as class representative.

Greenwald said that class members received, on average, 3.3 calls from Van Ru and are receiving the maximum settlement permitted under the TCPA. There are about 9,042 potential class members, but only those who submit claims will receive payment.

Judge McNamee also granted plaintiffs’ request for $644,000 in attorneys’ fees and $20,847 in litigation expenses, according to the order.

The three debt collectors continue to deny any liability for the alleged violations, according to the agreement.

Representatives for Van Ru were not immediately available for comment Thursday.

Debt Collector Will Write Off $3 Million of Debts, Close Doors
Credit.com By Christine DiGangi
2 hours ago

The Georgia Consumer Protection Office ordered an Atlanta-area debt collector to shut down his business and stay out of the industry for five years following numerous consumer complaints about the company's practices and its alleged use of illegal debt-collection techniques, according to the Daily Report. Earnest Earvin IV, owner of Zenith Financial Group, agreed to get out of the collections business for five years, and he will be subject to a $460,000 penalty if he violates the agreement.

According to complaints filed with the Better Business Bureau (33 were filed and resolved in the past three years), the company is accused of calling consumers and threatening them with arrest, criminal charges and physical violence if they don't pay the debts, many of which consumers claim are not legitimate in the first place. Zenith Financial Group has an F rating with the BBB.

As part of the agreement with the consumer protection office, Earvin and Zenith will no longer attempt to collect on more than $3.1 million in supposed debts, in addition to paying $15,000 in penalties, according to the Daily Report. (The total penalty is $460,000: $15,000 now and $445,000 immediately coming due if Earvin violates the agreement.)

The phone number for Zenith Financial Group is out of service, and an email to the company seeking comment was returned as undeliverable.

Do NOT pay collection accounts thinking it will help your credit -  it won't. See below.

Paying off a collection balance of $1,000 dropped a 630 FICO score to a 590

Unfortunately this is an all too common occurrence as any of you with
collections have probably experienced. There’s a deficiency in the credit reporting system that shows recent activity on a collection account, if you were to make a payment. This recent activity makes the collection look younger and can result in a score drop. In my simulation the “recency” of the collection went from “greater than three years old” to less than 12 months. When you make a payment on a collection the collection agency will report the new balance to the credit reporting agencies. The “date reported” on the collection account will be the then current date, which can lead to the score drop.

11 ways a debt collector may be breaking the law

http://blog.credit.com/2011/04/eleven-ways-a- ... -the-law-18624/

Clark Howard, financial advisor, says to call them back with your lawyers fax number and tell them that they can fax all the information to your lawyer. This usually causes them to back down.

Clark Howard also said that creditors are desperate these days and will try everything legal or illegal to get you to pay. Don't give in!

Keep in mind these are NOT lawyers calling you. They are $8 an hour people who have never even graduated from high school and it's the only low-paying job they could get.

Calls and leaves 2 second  blank voicemails.

Also, the positive comments about this company seem staged.

Ciao

Debt collectors are falsely claiming to represent law firms and threatening you with legal action and even jail time if you don't pay.

A debt collection firm in Glendale, Calif., has been fined for sending unlawful text messages to alleged debtors. But that's not all. They're also doing another big no-no: Calling and telling friends, relatives, and employers about the debt you allegedly owe.

Within that right, however, there are rules: You can't harass someone, threaten them, cuss at them, threaten to harm them, have them arrested, or put them in jail. So the next time you're threatened with legal action, remember that it could be a scammer and keep these pointers in mind:

Always record any calls from/to a collector.
If a debt you legitimately owe is outside the statute of limitations, you are not required to pay up. However, you should honor your obligations when you're financially able to do so.
You have the right to tell a collector never to contact you again. Use a drop dead letter and send it via certified mail. You can still, however, be sued against the debt even after sending this letter.
If you legitimately owe money and wish to make a deal to pay, never give a collector your checking account number over the phone. Collectors routinely take more money than they say they'll take.
Never pay one cent until you have an agreement in writing stating your payment(s) will resolve a legitimate debt in full.

Rash Curtis & Associates apparently out in Vacaville somewhere, but not very professional to call after 7pm and hang up after the message starts without a word..strikes me as odd.

Rash Curtis Collectors. DO NOT ANSWER the phone and do not talk to them! Report them.

Emma Leah, they are trying to confirm there is a person on the other end. DO NOT ANSWER.

They also robocall from MANY different numbers with different area codes. If you don't know the number, do not answer it.

They way they are treating you is abusive and are violations of the FDCPA (Fair Debt Collection Practices Act). Keep track of when they call, date/time, what they said to you, and always, always tell them to cease and desist when they call you. Write that down too. Fax them a cease and desist letter (you'll have proof that it was sent successfully, even if they say they never got the fax.) Here is a search engine to find their fax number. Make sure you find the company name with the same address as the one on the letters you've received.

http://www.acainternational.org/memberdirectory.aspx

I agree with everyone who says to report them! Keep the pressure on THEM - not the other way around!

The best advice I could give you (I heard it from Clark Howard, a financial advisor) is to call them back with your lawyer's fax number and tell them that they can fax all the information to your lawyer. This usually causes them to back down.

Clark Howard also said that creditors are desperate these days and will try everything legal or illegal to get you to pay. Don't give in!

robocalls from collectors are illegal - file complaint

I changed my phone number and it changed my life. Simple! No more bs from these jerks.

ROBOCALL from Collector. This is a COLLECTOR (Rash Curtis and Associates). They are bottom feeders and they violate the Fair Debt Collection Practices Act all the time because they keep robocalling, which is not legal.

Calls from MANY different numbers. Don't answer if you don't know the number.

Report them to Atty General, Consumer Financial Protection Bureau, and BBB. Do NOT answer the phone and do NOT give them any information over the phone.

Do NOT press any buttons!

they call kept pls stay on line till next person can help you

call and call repeatedly  they are now calling my parents

they call day and night.  dont know how they got my number and connected it to my son